what process for mirror finish aluminum?

**blucpe** · 07-23-2007, 01:58 PM

i purchased and installed ccw t-10 polishied aluminum rims for my c5. the finish is really very nice, i`ve even polished them with various polishes such as mothers al polish, zephyrpro40, neverdull, mothers mini power ball, all with good results, some better than others, but i`d like to get to the next level of shine, if there is one. has any one had any experience with rouge. if so which one, there are many, should i use, apply in what fashion etcthanx for your input.

**budman3** · 07-23-2007, 03:38 PM

Heat is the key with aluminum. This is where you`ll get the next level of shine. You can either get a rotary and get some polishing balls or a high speed drill with the Powerball or a polishing wheel. Beemerboy would be a member to contact to get in depth information about aluminum polishing.

**blucpe** · 07-23-2007, 04:29 PM

thanx budman i`ll give him a shout.

**blucpe** · 08-11-2007, 03:29 PM

went out and bought an electric drill, 2500 rpm, also got some polish called ball buster. it has a distilate and jewlers rouge in it that must be shaken frequently. this stuff works great. rims came out like mirrors. i sealedthem withe 3 coats pb`s wheel sealant and one coat of cg`s blttz spray sealant, rims seem to shine better with the cg sealant, takes away that cloudy look.

**Troy@Protekt** · 08-11-2007, 03:47 PM

Originally Posted by blucpe

went out and bought an electric drill, 2500 rpm, also got some polish called ball buster. it has a distilate and jewlers rouge in it that must be shaken frequently. this stuff works great. rims came out like mirrors. i sealedthem withe 3 coats pb`s wheel sealant and one coat of cg`s blttz spray sealant, rims seem to shine better with the cg sealant, takes away that cloudy look.

Pics?

**Beemerboy** · 08-11-2007, 04:19 PM

Originally Posted by budman3

Heat is the key with aluminum. This is where you`ll get the next level of shine. You can either get a rotary and get some polishing balls or a high speed drill with the Powerball or a polishing wheel. Beemerboy would be a member to contact to get in depth information about aluminum polishing.

Thanks for the referral I have spent countless hours learning about polishing aluminium.....here is what I know the Zephyr pro-40 is about as good as it gets as for heat I used a cotton bob that you can get from the zephyr site, they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes...once done th ey can be soaked to clean them....if you rims are in decent shape then using a rouge wheel is not necessary...those are for real bad or scratched metal....I spun my rotary at 2200 RPM`s and they came out like glass...one trick that I learned was, once you are done with the polishing part and you have a ton of black residue on the rim...get some baking soda or flour, put that on a clean mft and wipe the rim...it takes the residue off like you would not believe....and leaves the metal spotless...then you can add your sealant

sounds like thats what you did and I am sure that they look like a million buck!

**Pander5** · 08-11-2007, 05:26 PM

Wow, thanks beemerboy. I`m not even the original poster here but that`s great info. Sounds like you`ve done a couple in your time. Love the baking soda/flour idea.

**Beemerboy** · 08-12-2007, 11:32 AM

Originally Posted by Pander5

Wow, thanks beemerboy. I`m not even the original poster here but that`s great info. Sounds like you`ve done a couple in your time. Love the baking soda/flour idea.

Your welcome.....years back I had some American Racing polished aluminum rims that got trashed in the snow and them it rained so much that winter that I never got to them....I started looking for some polish to clean them up and along that way I found this guy in Oregon that polished metals for a living....he was the one that directed me to the Zephyr Pro-40, the cotton bobs and the baking soda trick....the baking soda / flour5 is a killer trick...trust me

**blucpe** · 08-12-2007, 12:25 PM

i wish i could post pics but still don`t have a clue. even with al l the steps posted right here on this site i stil don`t have a clue. beleive me i`m more frustrated than you because i would like nothin g better than to show everyone the results of all your great insight into detailing that i have learned from all of you. one of our members was supposed to stop by 2 weeks ago to spend some time and show me how to post pics but i guess he`s busy with work. well anyway you read my post this ball buster stuff really rocks.